5 Best Fertilizer Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds

3. Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 50

Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) is an Indiana-based agriculture company that works through two segments – Seed and Crop Protection. The company operates in the United States, Canada, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. On November 3, the company posted a revenue of $2.78 billion, up 17.3% year-over-year, topping analysts’ estimates by $200 million. Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) also affirmed FY 2022 net sales guidance of $17.2 billion to $17.5 billion, compared to a consensus revenue estimate of $17.31 billion. It is one of the top fertilizer stocks favored by elite hedge funds. 

On November 17, Barclays analyst Benjamin Theurer raised the price target on Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) to $75 from $71 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares following the Q3 earnings season. While the analyst is optimistic about the agriculture space, he believes fiscal 2023 will be a year of slightly more normal levels of earnings, with results exceeding performance prior to sanctions against Belarus and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Among the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, 50 funds reported owning stakes worth $941.8 million in Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) at the end of Q3 2022, compared to 42 funds in the prior quarter worth $966.4 million. Israel Englander’s Millennium Management is the biggest position holder in the company, with 2.60 million shares valued at $148.70 million. 

Here is what Aristotle Capital Management Value Equity has to say about Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) in its Q1 2022 investor letter:

“Corteva Agriscience, one of the world’s largest seed and crop protection companies, was a primary contributor for the quarter. Due to its respected brand and the value-added benefits of its patented seeds and crop protection solutions for farmers, Corteva has been able to more than offset input cost inflation with sustainable price increases. In addition, the company’s ongoing mix shift to higher-margin, premium products, a catalyst we previously identified, is aiding both sales and profit growth. Shares were likely also buoyed by the rise in crop prices. Market participants, perhaps eager to chase short-term trends, poured into the sector. At Aristotle Capital, we look past such gyrations and, as long-term investors, do not attempt to predict short-term changes in commodity prices. We remain excited about what we view to be high-quality characteristics and fundamental improvements that permeate Corteva’s business, not the least of which include its pricing power.”